England call-up delights proud Castle

Evo-Stik Northern Premier League Newcastle Town’s proud officials are hailing the rise of Tom Conlon after his call-up to an England U18 training camp, writes Thomas Gillespie.

The 17-year-old former Castle youngster, pictured, is heading to St George’s Park in early January to take part in a two day training camp. He was one of the stars of the First Division South club’s U18s side before joining Peterborough United in October 2012.

The midfielder arrived at the Lyme Valley Stadium after being released by Premier League Stoke City and was managed by Newcastle’s Head of Development Gavin Appleby. He is delighted with the way Conlon bounced back after the dent to his confidence and even more so with his current progress after he made his professional debut in November, a 30 minute appearance in the FA Cup against Exeter City.

That was followed three days later with a run-out against Dagenham and Redbridge in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy and Appleby said: "We knew he had the potential to go a long way. He was a shining light in the squad while he was here, but Stoke City have to take a lot of credit for that as he was with them beforehand.

"We gave him a chance to regain his confidence and he’s taken it with both hands. I still keep in touch with Tom, he’s a great lad. His call-up to the training camp is great for the individual and it’s great for the club."